Contest produced 'Surf 'n Swim' name for Layton's aquatic feature

IT was a city-wide contest in the summer of 1986 that secured the title for Layton's soon-to-be-open aquatic attraction, the Surf 'N Swim.
  Steven Wright, a young teenager from Layton, submitted the winning name in the contest. He received a pass to the facility for his entry.
At its opening in the late summer of 1986, the Surf 'n Swim was the only wave pool in the nation with year-round usage. The 210-foot long by 175-foot wide bubble enclosure is what makes the pool able to be heated and open all year.
  "It's exciting to pioneer something like this," Carter Cook, Layton's Parks and Recreation Department Director, told the Davis County Clipper, in an article by Keith Duncan and published on July 15, 1986. "There's been some concern that the pool won't be an Olympic-sized replica, but we didn't want that in the first place," Carter told the Clipper. "Sure, people can have good competition there, but it won't be for breaking world records."
  Carter stressed that the pool was mainly built for the 95 percent of the population who go swimming for fun. He said another key future is that half the pool is three feet deep or less, a great opportunity for young children.
The Surf 'n Swim opened in late August of 1986 and enjoyed about a dozen days under the sun, before the bubble had to be installed for the fall, winter and spring seasons.

                       A 1986 Surf 'n Swim ad, courtesy of the Heritage Museum of Layton.

  According to the Davis County Clipper of Aug. 22, 1985, the Surf 'n Swim was financed by Layton City with a bond, so there would be no tax increase to residents. An outdoor pool, with an optional bubble enclosure was chosen, because that was about one-third the cost of constructing an indoor pool with a regular building around it.
When the Surf 'n Swim opened, it was estimated there were 12,000 children living in Layton who were between the ages of 5 and 18.